I would really like my 14-year-old cat to put some weight back on, as he's lost quite a bit of his 'bulk'.
For instance, you can see his spine now, whereas you couldn't before.
I should point out that he's in excellent health for his age, but he's becoming a very fussy eater.
He only eats dry food (I add a bit of salmon oil to it) but only in very small amounts.
I've tried giving him wet food instead, but he doesn't eat any more of that either (about 2 teaspoons worth).
Are there any high-calorie wet foods available?
Thanks
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Expensive compared to vet-prescribed dry food? Not at all.
Too much of a faff? Not really.
I was managing to spend about £17 a month on raw feeding for my 15lb cat, so for yours who must eat much less than mine... well, you get the idea.
Do look into raw feeding; for kidney health and weight loss, there’s nothing better. Whatever your vet might tell you, nothing beats a natural diet. In the wild, cats don't have kidney issues or weight problems—it’s dry food that’s the reason these things have started happening to them.
As for the idea that protein levels strain the kidneys, you should change vets; they clearly haven't got a clue about feline nutrition...
Finally, if you really don't want to put your cat on a raw diet, you should either soak their dry food in plenty of water (and buy a very high-quality brand like Orijen, for example) or feed them a top-quality wet food instead.
Hi there! I have a 13-year-old female cat, and she's a fussy eater! But she does eat small tins of tuna, just a supermarket budget brand. I give her small portions of raw meat and senior dry food since she doesn’t hunt anymore. She had a real problem with tartar and had lost a lot of weight, but after a trip to the vet to have the badly decayed teeth pulled out and some treatment, she’s back on her feet and doing great!
It would be best to take yours for a check-up at the vet to see if there’s an underlying issue. My old boy lost a lot of weight last year and it turned out he had advanced cancer, so we had to have him put down. Just be careful, as vets sometimes want to do loads of tests and blood work, which gets very expensive! One check-up cost me about £110, whereas it was an ultrasound that finally revealed a serious problem. Sometimes just checking the kidneys is enough. My other kitty had already had the same dental work as my female cat 6 months earlier, and they never told me he had a liver problem! They’d recommended a blood test to see if he could handle the anaesthetic, and even then they didn’t tell me about the liver issue. The result: £110 for the teeth and another £195 later just to bring him home dead!
Be careful with cooked chicken bones. They are far too brittle to be given to pets.
What dry food are you feeding your cat? It would definitely be worth switching to a diet with a higher water content, such as adding some grain-free wet food or even looking into raw feeding (BARF).
I know it’s not always easy with an older cat.
If he isn’t eating much, a check-up at the vet might be a good idea; senior cats are more prone to developing certain conditions (like CKD...)
